Owning a professional franchise is big business. Because of the money invested, however, it's also an emotional one.

That complicated reality has been a real problem in front offices throughout major North American sports. In short: The people with money at stake sometimes cannot bear to watch from the sidelines.

Micromanagers, assemble!

If there is positive news, several of these owners seem to have reformed their penchant for meddling ways. But there is little question they, at least one time, had an unusually central role in significant moves.

Francesco Aquilini, Vancouver Canucks

Back in November 2004, Francesco Aquilini purchased a 50 percent stake in the Vancouver Canucks. The team was a playoff regular and remained that way for about a decade.

In the background, though, his meddling was a constant.

"Aquilini was impulsive, unrealistic," an NHL executive told the National Post in 2009. He would have traded away the farm. He didn't want to sign players to more than one-year deals. He was always ranting. Then he'd be apologetic."

Along the way, there was a churn of executives with reports connecting Aquilini to dysfunction in the front office.

"The Aquilinis' involvement in hockey [operations] is the stuff of legends in back channels," Jason Botchford of the Vancouver Province wrote in 2016.

While the noise has quieted, it's certainly not silent amid a period of minimal success and a flurry of coaching moves.

James Dolan, New York Knicks, Rangers

James Dolan said, on multiple occasions in the 2010s, that he would stop and had stopped meddling with the New York Knicks.

In theory, that's been a good thing! That hands-off approach began with the ill-fated Phil Jackson tenure from 2014-17, but the organization has since become more competitive under the leadership of head coach Tom Thibodeaux and general manager Leon Rose.

But during the 2000s, the Knicks were a laughingstock with criticism often pointed at Dolan.

Look, it would be tough to find a more chaotic environment than having seven coaches in a decade. Throughout his ownership since 1995 into the mid-2010s, the Knicks constantly swung and missed on star players—whether it was the underwhelming Carmelo Anthony or failing to attract any number of marquee free agents to the Big Apple.

New York hasn't advanced beyond the second round of the NBA playoffs since the 1998-99 season.

(Meanwhile, the New York Rangers—with whom Dolan has a better reputation for less influence—have been a playoff regular for 20 years with one Stanley Cup appearance and four trips to the Eastern Conference Final.)

Jimmy Haslam, Cleveland Browns

Again, positive news!

"Team sources said [Jimmy] Haslam has been less impulsive this season than in years past," ESPN reported as the 2024 campaign ended.

It seems that's continuing a trend of him moving a little farther back out of decisions. Haslam, however, bought the Cleveland Browns in 2012 and quickly made a reputation for being way too involved.

For example, Haslam had a heavy hand in Cleveland adding Johnny Manziel, a 2014 pick who failed miserably. Haslam overruled the team's executives and hired Hue Jackson in 2016; the Browns promptly went 1-15 and 0-16 before Jackson was fired during the 2018 season.

Although rumors persist, there have been fewer reports since Kevin Stefanski was hired in 2020.

That year, the new coach helped the Browns snap an 18-year playoff drought. Cleveland returned to the postseason in 2023 under him, too. Haslam's reported drop in impulsiveness is clearly seen in Stefanski being expected to return for 2025 after a 3-14 year.

Still, it's been a long, frustrating road to this point.

Woody Johnson, New York Jets

It's not a great time around the New York Jets.

During the team's highly disappointing 2024 season, a few troubling reports made a ton of negative waves.

According to The Athletic, longtime owner Woody Johnson began vetoing all extensions for players on the roster in 2023. He reportedly would not allow then-GM Joe Douglas to fill the vacancies of assistant GM or director of player personnel. That set the stage for fireworks.

In 2024, Johnson suggested the Jets bench Aaron Rodgers after a Week 4 loss dropped them to 2-2. One week later, Johnson "unilaterally" decided to fire coach Robert Saleh and pushed Douglas into an expensive trade for wide receiver Davante Adams.

Throw in the whole Madden ratings controversy, and Johnson has been the subject of much bad press lately.

And that's simply the start of unsatisfying stories from his 25 years as the franchise owner. Through the 2024 campaign, the Jets haven't reached the playoffs in 14 straight seasons.

Jerry Jones, Dallas Cowboys

Since buying the Dallas Cowboys in 1989, Jerry Jones has served as the owner, president and general manager.

Can't really get more meddlesome, you know?

Hey, credit where it's due! Dallas won three NFL titles in the 1990s, enjoying what is rightfully remembered as a dynastic era. Jones has also turned the Cowboys into a cash cow, providing a blueprint of how to build a franchise into an absolute money-making machine.

Meanwhile, the Cowboys haven't been to a single NFC Championship Game—let alone the Super Bowl since the 1995 season.

The power struggle between Jones and Hall of Fame coach Jimmy Johnson led to the latter's exit in 1993. Jones absolutely had a part in the organization's rise, but Dallas' excellence began to fade as the roster built by Johnson became a team shaped by Jones and hasn't recovered.

I've said it once, I'll say it again: If the Cowboys had a traditional GM with the same (lack of) success over the last three decades, Jones probably would've hired and fired a handful of them.

Vivek Ranadive, Sacramento Kings

When purchasing a majority share of the Sacramento Kings in 2013, Vivek Ranadive took control of a flailing franchise. The initial half of the team's 17-year postseason drought can hardly be pinned on him.

But it certainly didn't get better in a hurry.

Similar to others, minimal patience led to a revolving door of coaches and key executives in Sacramento early in Ranadive's tenure. Heck, he even suggested the Kings try to defend with four players and leave a player on the offensive end to cherry-pick for layups.

"You would think that after making an ass of yourself, whether it's 4-on-5 or one bad hire after another, that you'd become more collaborative and seek out help," a source told ESPN's Kevin Arnovitz in 2017. "Vivek has done just the opposite. Instead of putting together a brain trust, he's his own brain trust—he and whoever the last person he talked to is."

The negative headlines began to dissipate, especially once Sacramento hired Monte McNair as the GM in 2020.

Well, at least until the Kings pulled a stunner and fired Mike Brown in December 2024 after back-to-back years of 46-plus wins. Sacramento hadn't accomplished that since 2003-04 and 2004-05 seasons.

Jerry Reinsdorf, Chicago White Sox, Bulls

On the heels of the worst season in MLB history, Jerry Reinsdorf's impact on the Chicago White Sox became a huge story.

"His influence on the team is everywhere," The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal and Brittany Ghiroli wrote. "It's not unusual for Reinsdorf to text broadcasters in-game about what they're saying, to attend offseason and spring training meetings (he lives in Arizona) or to solicit advice from his cabinet of handpicked advisors."

And that's not necessarily a good thing.

Reinsdorf's preferences have dragged down the Sox in numerous ways, but there's no worse example than hiring Tony La Russa in 2021. The decision seemed to overrule then-GM Rick Hahn, who diligently built a promising roster and reportedly wanted to hire A.J. Hinch. LaRussa had not managed for a decade and would be fired within two years.

Factor in a clear aversion to embracing a modern approach of running the organization, and it's no surprise Reinsdorf has watched the South Siders turn into a disaster.

Sure, he owned the Bulls during the Michael Jordan dynasty days in the '90s. But the team has been mired in mediocrity for roughly a decade, and he doesn't exactly have a reputation for being hands off on the NBA side either.